Self-Preservation
by ComicalParodox
Summary: Usually, this is where your self-preservation kicks in, forces you to forget what you're leaving behind in order to survive, and usually he thinks any other time he could do it, and he ll feel bad about it later but not here, not now. because all his self preservation is telling him is he cant survive without her. Oneshot


**Summary: Usually, this is where your self-preservation kicks in, forces you to forget what you're leaving behind in order to survive, and usually he thinks any other time he could do it, and he`ll feel bad about it later but not here, not now. because all his self preservation is telling him is he cant survive without her. **

"They should`nt of been there." She hummed, licking her lips, the stale taste of iron coating her skin and she let out a low grunt as she shifted, Tim moaned softly as her back pressed against his chest, and she hummed another apology as the water rippled under them, a dark red, their blood whisking together in the murky water.

"They were all supposed to be up top...on the streets...never supposed to come down here." Stephanie coughed, red drops of crimson leaking past her lips and Tim tried to take a deep breath, the pain in his side had long subsidized to a dull ache but the unnatural feel of his blood being pushed out of his wounds by his breathing was still a little unsettling, "we got them out..." he said, still out of breath, he knew one of his lungs were punctured, and if they got out of this he was sure he`d lose it.

It was just a normal night of patrol, they were just heading back when two gangs started to go at it on a busy street. They managed to take a few of the men but a group of teens were mistaken for part of one of the gangs group and were chased down into the sewer tunnels.

It would have been an easy fight if Killer Croc hadn't shown his face, that was were most of their injuries came but in the haze a gang man pulled a grenade and everything was a bit hazy from that point, fuck he wasn't even sure how they got this far, all he remembered was at one point they had stood, telling the injured teens to go topside before collapsing into a heap of broken bones and bloody Kevlar.

They`ve been here a while, long enough that the sewer hole above them shown gray light through the tiny holes in the thick metal. He wondered is batman knew where they were, if he was coming for them, if anyone was coming. Then he would remember the chunks of flesh missing from their sides and thighs were they were less likely to get hit, were they kept the trackers in cases like this.

God, their luck sucked.

"We got them out." She nodded at last, blond hair sticking to the her kevlar and the tips of her hair dyed red with his blood, or was it hers? Whatever.

Stephanie let out another cough and he swore he heard amusement in her voice, ever the optimist, "I swear...if...I die...again...I`m gonna...-," her words cut off as she let ut a painful cough, a few more drops of blood dripping from her mouth, she naturally tried to raise her broken arm to wipe it off of her chin but the feat proved too much and her hand dropped back into water with a silent splash.

"Your not gonna die." He said as strongly as he could but his voice was hoarse and his vision was starting to tilt.

"They`ll be...here." he gasped, swallowing back the blood in his throat, "Just...stay awake..."

she hummed with more amusement, "Dont...go...into the light...or africa...in my case."

"Africa." He hummed, leaning his head against the wall, blinking soaked black hair out of his eyes that still had tiny pebbles of rubble in it, he`d need to wash that out later, there were alot of things he needed to do later...

"D-do- do you think..."she stuttered, "d-do you think they`ll be disappointed in us?"

"No." He said, mostly to just reassure her. he moved his fingers that were behind Stephanie`s back but still pressed to his lower side were he was sure he was feeling his appendix leaking into the water. Great.

"Were not gonna die..." he said.

"Were not gonna make it...either." she said and coughed, knowing full well that if they made it out of this there was a hundred and ten percent chance that they wouldnt be going back to their work in the field and it brought a weird ache to his chest that wasnt his bleeding organs. He`d been doing this for so long, having Red Robin in his life, almost like a shadow that he didnt know what he would be without it.

And Stephanie, she`d worked hard for her title as Batgirl, harder then most and the most he was referring to told her more then once to stop, quit, give it up, your not made for this life, but she never stopped fighting. They would never stop fighting.

Even now their bodies had gone past their normal limits, testing, pushing ever last drop of blood from their veins untill there was no more. Ha, screw you nature, we`re still fighting.

Even when the fight is hopeless, and the outcome is already sealed, they`re just too stubborn to realize it...all becasue, embedded on their soul is a bat-symbol.

"I hope they`re okay..." she said and his face twitched just a little in the start of a frown, "who?"

"the teens."

"They`re alive." he said, "You-,"

"We." She corrected stubbornly and the corners of his lips twitched, "We-we saved them."

She hummed lowly, sniffling once, "I-I think when this...is...over...I`m gonna...move to...Bludheaven." she said, her voice catching and lowering.

"Oh...thats..." he didnt finish, turning his head to cough out a stream of blood that involuntarily leaked past his lips, staining his already pink teeth red.

"Yeah..." she breathed, blinking twice, "I-I thought...that, hey...maybe...I could do some...go there...and...it`s maniac...population...is alot...lower."

"I`ll miss you..." he said, words that he`d never dare say for fear of embarrassment now pouring out of his mouth.

There was a small silence, the water around them ripping a little as they breathed, tha halves of their bodies that werent in the water, still and broken, the light from above sighing off of their blood and kevlar.

"I...I never said you...couldn't come with me." she hummed and he let out a soft breathy laugh.

"I...think...I wouldn't mind taking up that offer." he said.

"Tim..." she breathed.

"Yeah?"

"I-I`m tired." she said and he nodded, hissing slightly as he sank a little lower, "Yeah Steph...me-me too." he breathed, blinking once and only once, thought when he did he sore the temperature in the sewers decreased to the zeros, and the body heat from the girl laying against him was slowly sub siding.

He didnt know if that small blink was a momentary black out, and why couldn't he of just stayed asleep, next to Stephanie. But he knew and it was the same reason as before...because he was too stubborn to sleep, to rest his head and close his eyes, there was a name for that.

Self preservation...

He could hold out a little longer, he really could, just a few more minutes and maybe those would be the difference of life and death for him, and usually this is where your self-preservation kicks in, forces you to forget what you're leaving behind in order to survive, and usually he thinks any other time he could do it, and he`ll feel bad about it later but not here, not now. because all his self-preservation is telling him is he cant survive with out her.

And he wont try.

**A/N: Hope you liked it, this week-end I`m gonna be working on my typing skills and what not so I`ll be writing a few little one shots. mostly about Tim and Steph because their my OTP as of right now. I`ve got a few up already and If you want me to write something specific for you I`ll be happy to do so ;)**


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